Officials Respond to Dyke Proposal
By KIRSTEN WILLIAMS
Cavalier Daily Staff Writer
Members of the Board of Visitors yesterday expressed mixed opinions of a proposal by Virginia Education. Secretary James Dyke's to increase the hiring of minority and women faculty members.
â€œAs a society, no matter where we are I think we should try to overcome some historic inequities,â€ said Board member Thomas Connally, who added people should not be forced into jobs for which they are not qualified.
Connally also warned against those who â€œblindly push toward quotas,â€ saying hiring unqualified candidates only belittles other job applicants.
Beginning this fall, the Virginia Education Departmentâ€™s Monitoring and Advisory Committee, together with the president and board of visitors of each Virginia state public college, will examine affirmative action programs at every college.
Additionally, Dyke said he plans to put more pressure on college trustees to increase the number of women and minority faculty members at their schools and to make affirmative action programs more effective.
Claiming Board members have already discussed the subject of minority hiring, however, Board member Evans Jessee said fully qualified candidates occasionally are not available.
â€œSometimes the stock is not that good,â€ Jessee said.
University Rector Hovey Dabney, saying he is unfamiliar with Dyke's plan, praised efforts already undertaken by the University to increase minority and women faculty members.
â€œWe at the University of Virginia work very hard to increase minorities in the faculty and the students,â€ he said. The University is taking â€œpositive steps.â€